July 02, 2014

Sweetpeas, it's time. It's time to say goodbye to Ain't No Mom Jeans. The new site is *just*about*ready*, and I'll still be blogging about all of the same stuff, and frankly, if we do our jobs right, changing to The Mom Edit will be seamless...but still. It feels like a new beginning, which also means an end.

Ain't No Mom Jeans was originally named partly in jest and partly because six years ago the landscape was vastly different. I remember being pregnant with Raines, and having to buy regular skinny jeans two? three? four? (let's stop counting) sizes bigger to fit my pregnant body. You guys, maternity skinny jeans were impossible to find. At the time, I was taking a class a CU-Boulder and as I'd strut my pregnant stuff around in tall boots and skinnies I would get non-verbal 'thumbs up' from girls on campus. One offered me a high-five as I passed. "You GO, Girl!" she said, cause that's what we said back in 2007. "I hope I dress like you when pregnant!"

Awww.

Clearly, we had NO IDEA that blogs were about to become the next big thing and that in a few short years, not only would bloggers (and celebrities) start treating baby bumps like the coolest new accessory, but that both fast-fashion and high-end designers would respond, churning out maternity gear that - heck! - I still want to wear (hello, Hatch Collection, anyone?).

So yeah. Saying NO to mom jeans once felt like a brave new world.

Thankfully, things have changed - to such a degree - that NOW, the only people wearing mom jeans are the teens and young twenty-somethings, but in an ironic way. It's a slippery slope, though, A SLIPPERY SLOPE. I want to tell them to BEWARE! That they'll still be wearing those damn things at 45, and that their children and their grandchildren will make mad, mad fun for wearing such unflattering jeans.....

Nah. They wouldn't listen anyway.

So in the spirit of looking forward, of new beginnings, let's take 56 seconds to look back. If you haven't watched the old SNL mom jeans skit in a while...well.

Ain't No Mom Jeans, you have served us well. I, for one, am beyond excited for this long-overdue refresh.

I typically buy Raines all the new clothes, and then give his old ones to Pax. Clearly this inequality isn't lost on little Pax because when I handed him this shirt - still in the package - he took one look at it and said, "DAT FOR ME?????"

A few weeks ago, we headed down to Kelly drive to go for a little family walk. And were greeted by this sight:

Oh. Oh. It was the Manyunk Bike Race, which is, apparentely, a big deal. There was music, and beer, and a kiddie carnival. They had some sort of zip-line thing for kids that dare-devil Raines was ALL ABOUT.

And guess who's behind Door #2?

It's Pax!! Pax typically hates this kind of stuff so I don't know WHAT ON EARTH possessed him to try this. I was freaking out (and taking pics, naturally).

Brave little puppy. But he did it. And when he was done? There were a bunch of people watching and laughing and pointing - he looked so small, you know?

Waving to his fans.

This was my reaction:

Dork. I am a dork.

Raines proceeded to go 2394876 more times, and Pax went ONCE more and then was all "I done, Mom" and really...who can blame him? You couldn't pay me to go on that thing. Well. You could, I suppose, but it would be for a lot of money.

After all of that excitement Mama needed a drink, so we wandered into a parent-wonderland known as In-Riva's patio.

I consider any joint with a patio to be kid-friendly. But this place also had crazy-amazing pizza, great drink selection, and live music.

Yup - it was as good as it looks. In-Riva is now one of our fav weekend haunts. They don't always have live music, but tiring the kids out with a walk along the river then stopping for pizza and drinks is one of the great joys in life. You know?

As are white dresses in summer. I like mine with birks. I have to credit Garace Dore with planting this seed. A year ago she was talking about white dresses and said, "With Birks? I do not think I am ready" and I thought "I SO AM" and now - just this past week!! - even Who What Wear is on board. So there you go. I'm not crazy. (Almost. I have a shirt that says almost not crazy and I think that's about right.)

June 26, 2014

Mike does best when....how to put this...he doesn't really need to worry about matching. Consequently, the man owns a drawer full of gray t-shirts.

One of the easiest-ever guy wardrobe upgrades is to swap a plain tee for a breton-striped one. Since stripes are a neutral, they really do go with everything (even plaid shorts). And if your guy is a simple jeans-and-khakis kind of guy? He really, really needs one of these.

June 25, 2014

For the 4th of July last year I wore a pretty white dress. It was a small act of rebellion, wearing a white dress on a day that would involve dirty curbs and candy-stained fingers. We even went to the beach.

I've been working with these short, post-chemo curls as best I can. But the one area that - ALMOST - completely beat me down was the beach (or pool). Basically, any place where you combine wind, insane humidity, and the potential for a dunking was a total and complete disaster. Remember when my hair was this short? Yeah - in hindsight, that hair rocked. This? This length is just long enough to be trouble.

Don't believe me? Let's take a pop quiz. In the picture below, choose the answer that best describes how this hair will look when dry (feel free to use the helpful hints below):

A. Oh pish-pish. Short hair is so easy that it'll dry perfectly straight and piecey, like Mia Farrow's. I'm pretty sure she rolled out of bed that way. Helpful Hint: NOT EVEN FREAKING CLOSE

C. A cross between an old-lady bouffant and bad man-hair. Helpful Hint: Marge Simpson and Donald Trump had a baby....

The answer is C, people. C!

Well. A last-minute trip to Free People cured my beach-hair woes. Admittedly, a last-minute trip to Free People can cure just about anything, but I am especially thrilled with these little headband/turban things. Unlike a scarf (which I did try), these things stay put really well, even in windy beach conditions.

Not bad, right? I took the advice of my fellow instagrammers who had suggest that I simply embrace the crazy hair. So instead of trying to shellack it down with gel, I used a salt spray and curl defining cream to just mess it all up on top.

Of course, my hair started winging about everywhere. But trust me when I say that this hair is much better with headband than without.

One final note: Shannon (my stylist at Salon Ziza) used a pretty strong keratin treatment on the sides of my hair to help control some of the curl. It REALLY helped. Just an FYI for anyone who might be in a similar situation.

Any other ideas? (Hats, I know. But so tricky with short hair, so hot on the beach.)

I'd swap out the pretty white blanket for a durable outdoor rug in a dark color and hang some solar lanterns (so I can just forget about them). Instead of a - what is that? Vintage bird cage filled with flowers? Good God. Instead of all of that, I'd set the scene with a tray of smoothies and fun straws. The storage stool might be the answer to the zillion pieces of stuff-used-to-make-guns that are currently strewn about my yard (a deadly combo of bristle blocks, legos, and sticks).

Was this article helpful? As much as I love all of the inspiration on Pinterest, I really just want someone to show me - EXACTLY - how to re-create. Not a DIY tutorial, more of a click-here-and-buy kind of thing, OH AND using mostly affordable products. IknowIknow and then I want a pony. I'd love to start doing more of these (turning Pinterest inspiration into something kid-friendly and easy) but truth be told...it's HARD. Are any of you good at this? Want to work together? Shoot me an email if you're interested: aintnomomjeans (at) gmail (dot) com

June 22, 2014

There are a handful of t-shirts that have been the backbone of my daily mom-uniform the last 6 months or so. I wear them to school drop-off, I wear them to the park. I find myself wearing them with high heels and pretty skirts on date night, or under suits when I want to look professional, but still like myself. Most of these tees have been slept in a night or two (or ten). Nights when I'm so exhausted that I fall asleep putting the kids down...and then (cringe) Iweartheteeallthenextday. #momconfessions These tees have been washed and dried a countless number of times, and they are all still hanging in there. And to make this whole thing rurrl easy, my daily everytees are either from J.Crew (and currently 30% off) or Sincerely Jules.

If you haven't heard of Sincerely Jules, you're in for a treat. A TREAT I SAY! Jules is a fashion blogger who started designing a line of seriously cool tees and sweatshirts. I love the quirky, interesting prints, the soft, drapey fabric, and the slightly boyish cut. These tees wash and dry really well (and I'm forever using stain stick on mine because, duh, white). But best of all? Jules is a total sweetheart.

(For size references, I'm wearing an XS in the top pic.)

One word of caution on the popsickle tee: my kids take one look and are all, "Whoa, cool popsicle! What a good idea, Mum! Can we have ones like THAT?" and then they DO NOT WANT the healthy homemade yogurt pops no mo'.

J.Crew's graphic tees are thin, perfectly drapey, and soft (even the linen). I wash and dry mine, but the linen tee will shorten in the dryer. I prefer my t-shirts slightly oversized, so I size up to a medium in J.Crew tees, then can wash and dry without fear. Fearless washing, just how I like it. J.Crew is also having a sale - most tees are currently 30% off with code HISUMMER.

June 19, 2014

Something I've been trying to find is the perfect cute sneaker. I had a pair of Bensimons which were adorable, but honestly, not comfy to wear for very long as they were so flat and with little support. Same goes for Converse. But what I've tried out more recently are Superga and Spring Court ... Italian and French tennis shoes. They aren't quite as slim because they're a unisex style, but there is a lot more support. The Superga is still pretty firm, but has a bit of arch support. The Spring Court are my favourites because they have a removable insole that is really cushioned and comfy for playing or walking all day.

Seriously helpful, right?? So we email-chatted a bit, and she indulged me by sending over a close-up of the Supergas and Spring Courts:

Here's a side by side of the superga and spring court (both eu size 39). I'm actually planning to return the superga and get another pair of the spring courts as that insole is unbelievably comfy and now I'm spoiled! (The spring court shown is from a pair I have had for awhile... I actually dyed them because I wanted a darker blue than I could find in my size at the time, so they survived that plus a lot of play).

I love both of them (and now am obsessing over navy sneaks). Allison, rock star that she is, THEN sent over pics of her next favorite sneaker trick: swapping out the laces.

Which do you prefer? I honestly can't decide.

Bonus, they make them in kids sizes too (Velcro or laces) and they are even cuter on the small people.

Allison, thank you SO much for this amazing review! I've been debating over another Converse purchase, but was holding off because - as you mentioned - they're not super comfortable (especially without socks in the summer). So thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts and adorable pics! This mama-community so appreciates it.

Allison's Outfit Deets (top pic)

I wore my sneakers today with bright blue tights, a thrifted skirt (h&m), a black tshirt (h&m), an old Gap cardigan, a dotted scarf from a trip to Barcelona, earrings by Darla Hesse, brooch by Fairyesque. Bag is a Moop Paperback in grey (found this thanks to your blog and love it!) Sneakers by Spring Court naturally.

I usually try to wear sneakers with a skirt or dress as it feels much cuter than just with jeans.